Observations of Massive Star-Forming Regions: New Developments and Looking to the Near Future with SOFIA
Dr. James M. De Buizer (SOFIA-USRA)
ABSTRACT :
In this two-part lecture I will first discuss new results concerning the observational properties of young
massive stars as derived from data spanning the near infrared to the millimeter. In particular I will focus
on the nature on mid-infrared emission from massive young stellar objects and its relationship to outflows
and masers. I will end this first part of the talk with what we can learn in the near future about massive
star formation using the Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy. SOFIA is a 2.5m telescope mounted
in a modified 747 aircraft that will fly above 99.8% of the Earth's water vapor, allowing nearly uninterrupted
spectral coverage from 0.3 microns to 1.6mm. The second part of the talk I will give the audience an update on
the present status of the SOFIA project as we are about to enter into our first science flights in mid-2009. I
will also discuss exciting opportunities for the general astronomy community to be involved in this early
science phase.